When Shai Gilgeous-Alexander walked into a basketball club in Grade 8 with big feet and long arms that he hadn't yet grown into, his coaches couldn't predict that at 19, he would be a coveted NBA draft prospect and could overnight become one of Hamilton's most famous athletes.

The Hamilton native is a freshman at the University of Kentucky playing point guard — and now he's 6-6 with a 6-11 wingspan. He's projected to be among the top picks in Thursday's NBA draft.

"I didn't think anything different other than the kid has a nice gentle spirit about him," said Dwayne Washington, who taught and coached Gilgeous-Alexander both at Sir Allan MacNab Secondary School where he's a teacher, and at the youth organization UPlay Canada.

"He was able to work on all the things people didn't want to work on," said Washington. "I can honestly say Shai hasn't skipped any steps"

Gilgeous-Alexander's greatest strength, according to Washington, is his poise.

"His ability to not be sped up, which allows him to be able to see things slower and be able to make better decisions because he's not rushing."

That's fitting for a point guard who is responsible for setting up the team's offence — and someone who needs to make calculated decisions as he's dribbling the ball up the court.

He had an incredible work ethic at the time and that was the thing that stood out most about him.- Frederick Owens, skills developer, UPlay Canada

"I think he's wired in a way where he's able to stay calm in situations where most people would not be calm, which allows him to perform better," said Washington.

The longtime coach thinks Gilgeous-Alexander will probably be drafted between sixth and ninth. "He's going to surprise people, I believe."

He outworks everybody

As a skills developer coach for UPlay, Frederick Owens was in that same Hamilton gym Gilgeous-Alexander walked into as a Grade 8 student.

Gilgeous-Alexander's mother, Charmaine Gilgeous, who competed in the 1992 Olympics as a sprinter for Antigua and Barbuda, was curious about her son's abilities.

Owens told the athletic mother, with feet that long, her son could be one of three things — a swimmer, basketball player, or a clown, he joked.

Like Washington, Owens noticed the young player's work ethic.

"He had an incredible work ethic at the time and that was the thing that stood out most about him," said Owens. "He just simply outworks everybody."

Gilgeous-Alexander was recruited to the University of Kentucky amid less fanfare than his all-American teammates, but he quickly emerged as one of the best players in his freshman season. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The skills developer said they supported Gilgeous-Alexander because of his attitude.

"We figured at that time we could teach him the guard position, and with that work ethic that he has, we knew that he would be something special, but it was really up to him at that time," said Owens.

"He was just a little kid who was enjoying the game of basketball, which you could clearly see that he had a passion to play."

.<a href="https://twitter.com/shaiglalex?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@shaiglalex</a> is ready to hear his name get called at tomorrow’s <a href="https://twitter.com/NBADraft?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NBADraft</a>! <a href="https://t.co/NMWOz6YAeN">pic.twitter.com/NMWOz6YAeN</a>